Hans Vercauteren (°1990) is a composer and conductor with an extensive experience in leading and creating music for theatre. His concert music has a distinct and programmatic vision and are written for a great variety of forces, going from symphony orchestra to big band.

​He studied composition with Wim Henderickx and attained his master’s degree magna cum laude in 2013 at the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp, where he also studied orchestral conducting with Ivo Venkov and Koen Kessels. After his studies he attended personal conducting lessons with Ed Spanjaard.
In 2018 he completed an Artist Diploma course (composition) at the Royal College of Music in London, supervised by Kenneth Hesketh, Jonathan Cole and Errollyn Wallen. He was also an RCM Award Holder supported by a Musicians' Company Lambert Studentship.

For several years now he is a member of the Artistic Council of Music at the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp.

Hans frequently works as a recording producer/music supervisor for Motormusic.
He regularly leads recordings with The Flemish Radio Choir and Brussels Philharmonic.
Other artists include Hermes Ensemble, Casco Phil, Astoria, The National Orchestra of Belgium...

​
As a composer Hans is a Worshipful Musicians' Company Yeoman 
and was an LSO Soundhub Associate from 2017 till 2019.
His professional debut as a composer came in 2012 with "Ich glaub nicht", an orchestral song commissioned by the Chamber Orchestra of Belgium. This marked the beginning of a strong and collaborative relationship with the orchestra. This work marked the start of a strong cooperation with the orchestra, both as a composer and conductor. Notablt, in 2014 he composed the tune A choice in honor of their new name, Casco Phil, premiered during a live broadcast of the Belgian television program De Zevende Dag. In 2021, they premièred his orchestral fantasia Reinaert for soprano Hanne Roos and orchestra.
Hans's compositions are by and large music for theatre, from contemporary opera to theatre songcycles. Both in 2020 and 2021 he created new opera shows at the Tête-à-tête opera festival. Together with his partner, composer Lente Verelst, he founded a small production company Story Tree, creating and producing music for music theatre, opera, films and dance. A recent project was their concertfilm/music theatre, in co-production with Evil-Penguin Tv of Guide to the Lakes, a dramatized travel guide, performed in the Hendrik Conscience Library.
​
As a conductor Hans made his professional conducting debut with Casco Phil in December 2016, leading the Concert for Peace and was invited again later to conduct concerts with them in Tilburg (the Netherlands). He has been having a strong connection with them ever since.In London he was voted the new principal conductor (in 2018) of the SU Film Orchestra at the Royal College of Music where he lead an operatic “Bernstein” celebration show in the RCM Britten Theatre. Appointed by the Kask Royal Conservatory of Ghent he conducted two series of Benjamin Britten’s complete Turn of the Screw, with director Gidon Saks.
In 2023 he will function as assistent conductor in the opera production The Convert, by Wim Henderickx, at the Opera of Rouen.
Hans is a regularly asked orchestrator and arranger. He writes for many different kinds of forces but is primarily specialized in ballet productions. In the past years he has had different commissions by The Royal Ballet (Covent Garden), Swedish Royal Opera and Birmingham Royal Ballet. His most recent orchestration was a complete reworking of Minkus’ Don Quixote for BRB, with additional new compositions, working closely together with Carlos Acosta, the orchestra, the dancers and musical staff.

To compliment the different parts of his career, Hans works as a session producer/music supervisor during recordings by Motormusic.
He frequently directs recordings with The Flemish Radio Choir and Brussels Philharmonic. Other artists and ensembles include Hermes Ensemble, Casco Phil, Astoria, The National Orchestra of Belgium, Opera Ballet Flanders, The Flanders Symphony Orchestra and other acclaimed soloists (Pieter Wispelwey, Jozef De Beenhouwer, …)
Since several years he is a member of the Artistic Council of Music at the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp, an advisory board with representatives of the cultural field. 


Awards
2016 - 2nd prize Euregio Composition Competition with his piece The Garden, for large orchestra.
2017 - Winner Halle Carol Competition with Little Tree, a carol on a text by E.E. Cummings.